when doing a workout such as 4xmile....

I always liked the story of a former world class runner when he was asked how much rest he took for his mile repeats, he said as long as he finished the 3 or 4 within an hour it was fine.

Kind of shocked people. That would mean like 10-15mn rest b/t each...

there is no correct answer. There is a purpose for very short rest, short rest, and long rest and everywhere in between.

Saying 5min is too long or 2min is too short is ignorant.

moreover wrote:

No Robert, I disagree.

4x1600 in 5 minutes with 90 seconds recovery is not the same as 4x1600 in 4.50 with 3 minutes recvoery, which is not the same as 4.45 with 5 minutes recovery.

They are all equally good sessions.

I know what you're getting at, but disagree with them all being equally good. I think there's little point having more than three minutes recovery in ANY session (ok, maybe for full recovery 300s etc but that's a different story).

If you need 5 minutes to recover from a certain paced effort then drop either the distance or the pace until you can cope.

And I expect that's a typo in the last example, but the last two sessions given are effectively the same but one has a ton more recovery. Far from equal

Depends on what pace, what\\\'s the goal.

3-4 x 1 mile FAST, 5k pace, 2-3min rest

5-6 x 1 mile Moderate, 10k pace, 1-2min rest

6-8 x 1 mile Steady, halfmarathon pace, :30-:60 rest.

Alan

Robert Smith wrote:

moreover wrote:

No Robert, I disagree.

4x1600 in 5 minutes with 90 seconds recovery is not the same as 4x1600 in 4.50 with 3 minutes recvoery, which is not the same as 4.45 with 5 minutes recovery.

They are all equally good sessions.

I know what you're getting at, but disagree with them all being equally good. I think there's little point having more than three minutes recovery in ANY session (ok, maybe for full recovery 300s etc but that's a different story).

If you need 5 minutes to recover from a certain paced effort then drop either the distance or the pace until you can cope.

And I expect that's a typo in the last example, but the last two sessions given are effectively the same but one has a ton more recovery. Far from equal

Robert Smith -

Could explain in more details:

1/ Why do you think there is little point in having more than three minutes recovery in ANY session?

Thank you.

why does Renato Canova use longer rest between long intervals with his athletes?

Thu 7

(Track)

4 x 1000m in 2'32" rec. 4'/5' - (Rec. 8') -

6 x 500m in 1'12" rec. 4'/5' - (Rec. 8') -

800m in 1'54"

I am referring to the 4 x 1000m, recovery 4-5 mins, the pace is slightly faster than 5k pace

here is another example:

Thu

20 min w.up - (Track) :

7 x 1000m in 2'42" rec. 4 min

the workout is about 10k pace, maybe slightly faster

bump

because Canova realizes that you have to modulate recovery based on the purpose of the workout and that the goal of a workout is not to make you completely exhausted at the end. Just because you can do 5x1km at 5k pace w/ 2min recovery doesn't mean you should do it.

bump it up

I always used the rule of thumb of jogging half the distance the distance of the interval for recovery if you're doing longer repeats in the early season.

EX:

4xmile with 800 jog, which, depending on fitness level, would be around 3:30-4 minutes.

Robert Smith wrote:

moreover wrote:

No Robert, I disagree.

4x1600 in 5 minutes with 90 seconds recovery is not the same as 4x1600 in 4.50 with 3 minutes recvoery, which is not the same as 4.45 with 5 minutes recovery.

They are all equally good sessions.

I know what you're getting at, but disagree with them all being equally good. I think there's little point having more than three minutes recovery in ANY session (ok, maybe for full recovery 300s etc but that's a different story).

If you need 5 minutes to recover from a certain paced effort then drop either the distance or the pace until you can cope.

And I expect that's a typo in the last example, but the last two sessions given are effectively the same but one has a ton more recovery. Far from equal

Robert, long recoveries build speed. You want to be faster don't you? There are many ways to do this, and one of them is to do your normal sessions with a much longer than normal recovery, but a faster pace.

There was no typo. A 15.30 runner who wants to break 15 will usually find benefit from running 1600's in 4.45, but that is very fast pace for a 15.30 runner, hence the long recovery, thus making the session hard, but not too hard.

Runningart2004 wrote:

Depends on what pace, what\'s the goal.

3-4 x 1 mile FAST, 5k pace, 2-3min rest

5-6 x 1 mile Moderate, 10k pace, 1-2min rest

6-8 x 1 mile Steady, halfmarathon pace, :30-:60 rest.

Alan

Agree.

I have a training partner, who always has to push the pace on recoveries - 200s, 400s, 800s, you name it, he has to be moving at slightly less than normal training pace on his recoveries. Grrr! With this in mind, all of his workouts tend to be the same ... basically cruise intervals. He has great aerobic strength, but his 10 year old daughter could out kick the guy in the last 800m of any race ... not quite, but you get the idea.

Ultimately, recovery all comes down to the purpose of the workout and the level of fitness of the athlete.

And as mentioned before regarding recoveries, "just because you can, doesn't mean you should".